Woman making heart shape with her hands on her belly
Between 2-3 million people visit the doctor for irritable bowel symptoms per year. The estimated costs of the disease in terms of absent workers is about $21 billion dollars per year!
The pain of gastrointestinal diseases like irritable bowel affects up to 15% of the world’s population.
Do you suffer from gastrointestinal pain? Do you miss work due to poor digestion? Modern life stressors often lead to poor gut health and weakness.
But there are some things you can do if you’re suffering. Keep reading to learn some good habits to improve digestion.
1. Water, Water, Water
It’s hard to stress this too much. Aim to drink between 2-3 liters of water per day. This keeps your body well hydrated.
Water helps your body eliminate waste. If your body suffers continuous low-level dehydration, that leads to constipation. Chronic constipation leads to worse digestive issues.
2. Don’t Forget Fiber
Include foods rich in fiber in your diet. These include beans, nuts, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
Fiber and water work together to rid your body of waste. Eating lots of fiber without drinking enough water can create severe constipation.
3. Avoid Irritants
Do you have a lot of gut pain and digestive issues? Try eliminating caffeine, alcohol, spicy foods, and sugar-heavy desserts.
Once you feel better, slowly add foods back one at a time. This way, you can determine which foods are causing the problem so you can stop eating them completely.
If you’re having continued problems, it might be a good idea to get gut microbiome testing.
4. Include Probiotics
Probiotics are beneficial bacteria and yeast. They help with good digestion and intestinal function. Probiotics are naturally occurring in the body but consuming extra helps digestion.
What’s a probiotic? Foods like dark chocolate and yogurt. Check to make sure the yogurt isn’t high in sugar and contains live bacterial cultures.
Eat fermented foods such as sauerkraut and kimchi. These also help improve digestion.
5. Exercise Daily
Daily exercise is so important for overall good health. Exercise improves circulation, lowers stress hormones, and increases endorphins. Check out Keybiotics Review.
Exercise helps decrease inflammation in the body and improves your cholesterol. You don’t have to be a full-time athlete. But make sure you take a 30-minute walk daily.
6. Avoid and Manage Stress
You can’t avoid all stressors but avoid unnecessary stress whenever possible. With unavoidable stress, learn stress management techniques.
Aim for 7-8 hours of sleep at night. Learn deep-breathing exercises and meditation. Avoid too much social media.
Stress imbalances the bacteria in your gut and increases inflammation. Do your best to keep stress low.
7. Mindful, Healthy Eating Improves Digestion
Avoid sugar and processed foods. But also take time to eat in a mindful manner. Don’t eat while watching television or reading.
Think about how much you’re enjoying your food, and eat slowly. One of the worst things for digestion is eating fast food on the run!
Try These Tips for Improved Digestion
Improve digestion with these healthy tips. If it seems like a lot, try adding them in one at a time. Start with drinking more water and cutting out spicy foods and alcohol.
Add lots of veggies and healthy fiber to your diet. Add in some probiotics and fermented foods.
Instead of sitting in front of the television, take a daily walk after dinner. You’ll feel better in no time!
Looking for more healthful tips? Take a look at our blog here.